First Impressions – Musaigen no Phantom World
KyoAni ain’t your damn seasonal MoMA
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Hey kids! It’s the Kyoto Animation train. All aboard!! I typically have high expectations for this studio, and honestly this first episode hasn’t blunted those expectations. But be on the look out for some viewing lessons. |
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When I see Kyoto Animation, it’s hard not to have some expectations. And for me, luckily they’re mostly in the quality and polish departments. So I never know what the other parts are going to be like, but I’m usually assured of them being pretty good. So how was Phantom World? |
Cosmic Horror Comedy
skylion// At first I thought I was in for nothing but trouble with Ichijou’s perfunctory introduction being perfunctory, I wasn’t at all put at ease with the introduction’s content either. It’s a stretch to go from simple optical illusions to hotpants fairy in the one go, a near breaking point to bring a whole herd of Ghibliesque background mooks with it. But we work with what we have, and we almost had a zombie outbreak if the rest of the exposition is to be believed! Some sorta particle!
But, at least it isn’t as brain-hurty as the “we only used ten percent of our brain matter and if we tap the rest of it we get super powered ice-cream” bit of sci-fi wank & cheese that should be on it’s last legs very soon (and if not, I’ll be off to murder the trope in it’s sleep toot sweet). This was my biggest grip dealt with; my minor one being Ichijou treating us to a Please Ignore My Paint as it Splatters on the Fourth Wall/It worked in the Opening Scene exposition to a very confused Reina. There had to have been a better way to exposit that stuff!!!!
But upon further reflection I now realize that Ichijou’s intro, besides being a bit more charming the second viewing, is the very basis upon which the whole raft of Lovecraftian/Derlethian cosmic horror floats; and that’s really cool as now we get that with comedy instead, which is where it belongs in the 21st Century, and not the pulpy ass-hattery of yesteryear. With that in mind, it’s perfect to see that this show isn’t at all shy about wearing it’s light novel origins from the get-go. This really isn’t a bug, it’s a feature, and I’m not just saying that ironically.
So far I’m enjoying the groove the show is on. I won’t hide the fact that I wanted the show to be another KyoAni second coming, nor will I hide that such an expectation is silly of me. It’s a work in progress, both the show and my expectations. But I like the groove. I like Ichijou and Mai’s gender-role reversals; both with her unusual tai-chi positions and his I‘m Here to Read Libraries and Chew Bubble-gum attitude. Reina is a great wild card to throw into the mix as she can easily fit between both of them, and her power is crazy enough to be scary. These characters are funny, and they work, let’s see more.
Great But Not Excellent?
Highway// I felt like this wasn’t a bad show, not at all. But it felt like it didn’t have that kind of great creative spark that maybe we’ve (a bit unfairly) come to expect from Kyoto Animation. While I said that they can be expected to have everything together in the polish and quality departments, not everything they touch is, or could ever be, an instant classic. And I wonder if maybe that unrealistic expectation leads to there being a sense of a show feeling unmoored from something. Like you’re waiting for it to get to the super awesome part, and there isn’t a super awesome part, just this good stuff all the time.
And as I think about it, maybe one aspect on this show about it being “Good but not super awesome” has to do with the VA for the male main character, Hiro Shimono. He’s definitely a good voice actor, but I wonder if he’s the kind of voice actor that’s not going to be able to pull a show up to that next level. He’ll do a good job, he never messes a show up, but he’s just not that top tier guy that can add the boost. Are there any of those guys?
I dunno. If you look at the shows I’ve rated as a 10, only three of 11 even have a significant male character, and only one of them (Hyouka) is male-centered (most of them are ensembles of girls, in fact). So maybe it’s a general bias on my part against guys. But I do think that Hiro Shimono is not your Jun Fukuyama or Hiroshi Kamiya, or even Natsuki Hanae or Matsuoka Yoshitsugu. And if that plays a part in limiting the show’s potential, it’ll be a bit of a disappointment.
A Few More Things of Import
She can’t win em all without help…
Reina, you just write internet memes whole, don’t you?
My Martial Art Brings All The Boys To The Yard…
Just add LOLi…
Phantom World, you really move me!
I enjoyed watching the show. I do tend to like when KyoAni moves maybe a little bit more mature, as this show did focusing on Mai’s body-touching and Reina’s embarrassment. And I really did like Mai and Reina’s characters, and think that you really can’t go wrong with Sumire Uesaka, Saori Hayami, and Maaya Uchida in featured roles. But this first episode missed the charm points by just a little bit for me. The dancing utility poles scene felt like it had a little too much repetition of sequences. The interplay between Mai and Haruhiko felt like it was a little forced. And while this might be a personal failing, it took me too long to realize that not everyone is fighting like Mai and Haruhiko are, which kind of puts their peer’s complaints about them in a weird light, at least for me. Let’s see how it goes, and I’m sure it’ll be good to great but maybe not excellent.
We’ve come to expect a great deal from a KyoAni production, and as Highway will say in a bit, that’s probably not as fair as it should be. This isn’t Hyouka, nor is it Hibike! Euphonium; where a great deal of the story will come out in the quieter, more character focused bits. It was never going to try to be that, and it shouldn’t be graded for not being that. It’s stupid to ask a medium to be just one thing, and it’s equally stupid to ask a studio to be just the one thing. Instead we should take it for what it gives us. and grade it on that, on what it wants to say and how well it says it. So with that in mind, what do we get?
I think we get a whole lot in the tank, we get a great big roar from the engines, and some rubber burning off of the starting line. It’s going to make a great run around that track, that is for sure, and it’s just too darn soon to give race results. This is LN fare to be certain, and I won’t fault this studio for dipping into it. Yeah, that market can and will get formulaic and I don’t doubt that this show won’t be aping some of that well worn material. Yes, it’s in a high school, yes it’s a club. Whine Whine Moan. Get it out of the way. Use the familiar as a base, tell your story from there. With that in mind I think the direction with Ishihara is just the thing to lift a bog standard recipe up and make it fun to watch; which is the only real demand I make on a show…
But over and above that demand, I rather like most of what the show is bringing. Both Ichijou and Mai make for a nice bickering couple, even if the relationship is more than a little forced at times. I love how Reina was introduced, cause if you think the spookiness is gone, think again (at least that’s how I’m betting). We’ve got a decent set up for our next two characters, so there is that to look forward to. Also not to be over-looked, but they didn’t overplay Ruru; and they really could have. In all, I rather like this crazy little world they’ve conjured and the players they’ve got on stage. I want to know what is up with Ichijou’s room, how the powers work, why the LOLi has those twin tails. Lots of stuff to look forward to….
About Tag Team
We live, laugh, enjoy and strictly believe on "more the merrier". When together, we usually come up with very chatty, conversation-based episodics and interesting posts.
POWUH: Meta Team and The Mad Scientist with 5525 comments
This is one of those shows I’ll keep watching because it makes me laugh. Still not sure if I’m laughing at it or with it though. Only time will tell!
Glad you guys addressed all the expectations that come with the Kyoani name attached to a project. Everyone goes into a Kyoani anime expecting something and that can make it harder to enjoy a show for what it really is. Even now, I’m already mentally ranking it amongst all the other Kyoani shows…
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10998 comments
Let’s just say you’re laughing towards it until the focus comes? That’ll work, right?
I think I can speak for Highway as well, but if KyoAni decided to pack it in after doing Hibike! we would be be like, “man it sucks you have to leave, but what a way to go!”. I wanted to lump this show in with the oddball shows like Amagi, but I really just need time to uncork this one and let it breathe…
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
That’s the troublesome thing I’ve noticed with the majority of viewers for some time now and it’s not only at KyoAni related series. Everyone’s becoming uptight, expecting too much of any series while having the attention span of rodents. Really, those are not good combinations, especially if it’s a show that sees fit to take its time explaining itself.
POWUH: Meta Resident and LN Informant with 1529 comments
Musaigen’s based on a Kyoani owned light novel series, which fits with their current in-house business model. So far this seems to be paying off – they maintain stronger creative control and keep more earnings for themselves (they’re going to move into a newly built office building just for them, a change from their previously rented office space).
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10998 comments
Yep, you can only imagine how badly Marvel wants some of their properties back for their own studio…
POWUH: Meta Team and Meta-Analyst with 3844 comments
kyoani’s version of Shomin Sample. File to Metafap.
POWUH: and Vampire Lover with 11746 comments
And so begins the Winter 2016 flood of First Impressions.
Not sure what to think of the series upon first reading the synopsis but this was a fairly likable start-off and not a bad beginning for KyoAni stepping out of its comfort zone. If I had to call out used similarities from the premise, the most eligible candidates would be either Kyoukai no Kanata (Beyond the Boundary) or Noragami. I mean, they even use the word “Phantom” to describe the creatures. And the way Haruhiko operates by drawing is reminiscent of Naruto: Shippuuden’s Sai.
What I like is that only one aspect wasn’t at work during the world’s exposition. People here are able to perceive the supernatural thanks to the after effects of an incident that involved science. Either one is fine by me but having both work hand in hand made it all more interesting. And I’ve already seen series centered on superpowers with the notion that the powers were born from changes in the brain. The Index/Railgun franchise being part of the bunch for that matter.
Decent overall and unless something occurs that rubs me the wrong way, I see no problem following this.
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10998 comments
It was a labspolsion! It could have been a zombie outbreak, but instead all the kids got mono-like symptoms and can now see random youkai….so really, nothing has changed all that much!!!!
POWUH: iLurker with 13 comments
You know, I find Highway’s comment on Hiro Shimono to be kind of funny, because he was the main reason I even started watching the show in the first place (yes, for me, the cast can be a more important factor than stuff like writers, studios, ect. in drawing me in); heck, I like him more than any of the other male VAs mentioned (to put it in an analogy, where he ranked Shimono is where I’d put Matsuoka, if even there). Maybe I’m just weird.
Ignoring my unnecessarily long-winded comment, I was quite entertained by this first episode. It’s just the kind of light-hearted show to kick back to. Admittedly, Haruhiko getting in position to get thrown by Reina (plus the throwing itself), as well as Mai’s comment on Haruhiko’s purpose now that Reina can just eat phantoms up didn’t feel necessary. But the whole limbo sequence felt so out-there to me that it more or less evened things up. So as long as things don’t get too dramatic, I think I’ll be enjoying my Wednesdays of Shimono and Hayamin.
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
If it wasn’t clear, I think Hiro Shimono is a fine VA, and does a good job in whatever he does. But by that same token, he just doesn’t have a record of elevating a show. I like a lot of the show’s he’s been in, like GJ-bu and Dakara boku wa H ga dekinai (despite that latter’s very disappointing result, because it had so many good parts that just didn’t come together). But it’s hard to say that he’s ever even been in a great show, much less had a major part in one. I don’t really think I’d rather listen to Matsuoka Yoshitsugu over Hiro Shimono, but he’s got a lot more lead power to carry a show, I think.
And I don’t think that it was a long-winded comment at all, but a good opinion. Thanks for dropping by and commenting!
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10998 comments
Highway has this thing for VAs….”Hmmm, which one of you is a particular flavor of not-quite-mediocre? Finding out who is best is just tedious…I think I’ll rate Shimono as a vanilla, but damn that Yoshitsugu is vanilla with like All The Chocolate Sauce!” ::evil grins::
But I would like to address your complaints. I found neither one remotely offensive or off putting. The anime physics is just that, they do it cause they can, and it’s almost, in my mind, an anime requirement. It’s like you’re taking the furnished apartment, the ugly recliner too…no, you get to keep the ugly recliner….Oh you better believe it’s on your security deposit…..
But honestly, the joke about replacing him is priceless. I feel for him so much, cause I really am the type of person that just knows stuff that people always end up dismissing; and this about as close as I can ever get to “inserting” with an anime lead. This goes right down to them asking “what does what you said have to do with anything?”, “Oh, nothing really, just wanted to share that I knew it”.
I feel for you Ichijou….::slaps chest twice:: Represent!
POWUH: 600-699 and LN Enthusiast with 623 comments
Doujins
whensoonI already knew what I was getting into when I saw the trailer and synopsis from several sites. A magical fantasy-battle-harem(?) show with better animation thanks to KyoAni that may or may not get better depending on how the plot is handled. And I eat shows like this for breakfast so I got what came for. Mai’s bouncing boobs are like a spice to this simple meal/show for me and it’s only a question whether you can tolerate its spiciness. There is at least some explanation for Mai’s fondling of her sides and boobs so there’s that. She needs to wear a bra though because that bouncing doesn’t seem possible with a bra. Is she wearing one or not? Does her poor(?) lifestyle from living alone prevent her from having bras? We’ll never know.
Something about the exposition to Reina about the Phantoms(which made my eyes roll with how unnatural it is) bothers me. They said the virus made everyone able to see these Phantoms. That means they were already around, yet why is it that only after the virus spread that these Phantoms can affect the world and cause destruction like that red monster. Could it be that the virus also affected the Phantoms aside from the humans? Or is it more related to the people’s brains affecting the surroundings or something like that. It’s probably not gonna be touched again and it’s not the focus of the story I guess.
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10998 comments
Well, “magical fantasy battle harem” is just a collection of signposts, really. How those signs are used to direct a story is up to the storyteller, and if treated as disposable then that’s what the output is going to look like. So, will KyoAni treat them as disposable, and is their version of disposable any different than any other studios version of disposable? Well, the race just started….
I took a brief glance at Tai Chi a number of years ago (not a study, that required more than what I got up to), and recognized some of the poses Mai was emulating, so I got that bit, the story just adds magic power to it…But, upon reflection, I’m not they type of person to ask a lady about her bra situation, so we’er just going to have to file her breast physics under “moves in mysterious ways” and be satisfied.
They could have easily made the world a wainscotting/secret/masquerade style modern magic setting, and it would have worked out just fine. While it’s true you have to explain why world history doesn’t change with all these monsters around, most stories could care bugger all about the real world and just want monster fights. I don’t think the formula changes for open magic worlds either, nor does the focus of caring about the real world when all you want are monster fights. So yeah, the devil is in the details for this virus…but I think they’ll probably take Alexander the Great approach and cut that Gordian Knot sooner than later…
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
I would say that it seems you’ve got a lack of experience with real-world bra physics. For the most part, they really don’t stop bounce, especially at that size. The only way to stop bouncing is if you really, really downsize, and go with being squashed all the time, which has its own downsides. I think it’s pretty unquestionable that Mai was wearing one.
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10998 comments
…man, can you imagine the banners that would be here if we were on the whole ads/analytic thing? we got anime, bras, Alexander the Great, etc.
POWUH: 400-499 with 445 comments
exactly; you’re absolutely right. It’s clear that mai was wearing a bra, which is why i find all these “mai should be wearing a bra” or that “tits cant bounce like that in a bra” comments to be funny. Sure that scene required some suspension of disbelief but the idea was sound
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10998 comments
…and if they weren’t being sued right now, I’m thinking we would have an ad for a certain “brain training” online game in this space now….
POWUH: 400-499 with 445 comments
hahaha….wait..who’s being sued??? and yea, part of the reason mai had to bounce her boobs in the first place was because her bra was holding them in place and she needed more “freedom” to make it underneath the pole. Oh mai: she’s easily my favorite character in this series as of now. The only character i may find more appealing than her may be koito (aka headphones girl) but we’ll have to wait and see.
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10998 comments
LOL, I’m making a dig at the thing that sounds like Lemonosity…
I quite enjoy Mai as well. She has a good feel to her despite some somewhat obvious “oh, we’ve done some gender role reversal here haven’t we”. I think I’ll give credit to KyoAni for just playing that straight and not calling a huge amount of attention to it.
Of course, and obvious since I just changed my gravatar again, I support the “bug-tails” LOLi…
POWUH: 400-499 with 462 comments
Ruru ftw.
POWUH: 400-499 with 445 comments
hahaha Im sure the bug-tailed loli is history in the making for the anime medium; when a radical movement has been made because of this loli, we as anime fans can look back and say “i was there when ruru made the whole reverse-twin tails thing hot”
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10998 comments
Kids, I used to remember when all of this was barren land. Nothing would grow. It was a sad, empty wasteland. Then the day dawned, and we saw that the Glorious Front Tailed LOLi would smile upon us from this day forward. From then, we’ve been blessed to walk this bountiful land in peace and harmony….
POWUH: 400-499 with 462 comments
I can always count on Skylion to turn his latest obsession into a religion. :p
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10998 comments
I’ve been elected LOLi POPe….
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
You guys talk about “front tails” and all I imagine is this…
I think some retribution is in order…
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10998 comments
I’m sorry, I didn’t know there was a Trigger Warning for that phrase….